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May 29, 2017

Exploring Elk Ridge: Focusing on the Positive

A couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege to listen to Darci Lang and Darren Lang speak at a conference for my day job. I didn't know what to expect going into it, but I came out of that weekend with a different perspective, not just of my job, but of my life.

We went for a walk through Elk Ridge in Waskesiu after the first day, and it was incredibly uplifting. I couldn't have gone on such a walk with anyone but the wonderful and talented women that I work with and am proud to call my friends.

Darren Lang was the first speaker, and he was fantastic. He spoke about stress in your life and how you can cope with it. As someone that has gone through mental health issues himself, he was really good at guiding us through ways to reduce stress -- the concept of "chill and choose" was a big take-away from his session.

Darci Lang spoke on the final day of the conference, and I wish we would have been able to see her all day. She really knocked it out of the park. Darci had a way of speaking that is incredibly hard to explain, but she instantly connected with everyone in the room in a way that you would have to experience to understand -- she travels around the country doing public workshops, so it is possible to see her if you're interested.

Darci talked a lot about seeing the positive things in your life -- the 90% -- and focusing on those instead of the negative things in your life -- the things that take up the other 10%. Easier said than done, right? But Darci doesn't make you feel that way. She has such a positive upbeat attitude and demeanor -- that in no way feels fake -- that you come out of her session with a renewed perspective on life that really makes you question what makes you happy, and how you can look at it differently so that it does make you happy.

I love my day job. I get to work with children every day and see how they change and evolve as human beings that love to explore and engage with their world. I love how each day is different and the children are always doing something new -- sharing a new story, a new skill. Darci asks you if you love your job, and, if you do but you are unhappy, how you can look at the positive aspects of what you love about your job instead of the negatives. The only person you can change is yourself.

That is the jumping off point. There are so many other places and aspects of life to explore with the 90%.